Synopses & Reviews
Forget Farmer's and say "adios" to Astrologer's - The Arizona Liar's Almanac is here! Filled with information on the local climate, flora, fauna, geography, modern living, and more, this endlessly entertaining book is guaranteed to make you wonder, laugh out loud, and wish it were all true.
And maybe it is! Why shouldn't quicksand make faster-working sandpaper? And why wouldn't Arizona's biggest export be sunshine? In between dispensing wisdom on home remedies and the weather, author Jim Cook - Arizona's Official State Liar - and Jim Willoughby - the best cartoonist in the West - reveal the truth behind the lost mines that riddle the Grand Canyon State, the sought-after recipe for Beanie Weenie Pie, and the renowned Society of Woolgatherers.
Review
"Jim Cook can color a story brighter 'en a Navajo blanket. He's also one of the funniest guys I've ever known. I've been stealing his material for years."
Marshall Trimble, Official Arizona State Historian
Synopsis
Forget the Farmers and say Adios to the Astrologers--
The Arizona Liar's Almanac is here! Filled with information on the local climate, geology, geography, technology, and more. Guaranteed to make readers wonder, and wish it was all true.
About the Author
Jim Cook, Official State Liar of Arizona, is also director of the Wickenburg Institute of Factual Diversity, located beside the storied Hassayampa River (www.wickenburg-az.com/journal.html). The Institute works to shed the shackles of fact and expand the truth about Arizona. In other words, Cook is a practitioner of that elegant tradition, the Western tall tale. He is a former writer and editor at the
Arizona Republic and has forgotten more about Arizona history than any ten newcomers will ever know. His history column was a fixture at the
Republic until his retirement in 1994. He is a native Arizonan.
Jim Willoughby is widely considered the best cowboy cartoonist in the West. His work has appeared in such magazines as Saturday Evening Post, Look Magazine, True, Better Homes and Gardens, and Playboy. He also spent 20 years in the television animation business, drawing storyboards and designing characters for Walt Disney Studios, Hanna-Barbera, Filmation Studios, and others. Jim has authored nine books about cowboys, cacti, and cooking and draws a regular cartoon for Arizona Highways called "Willoughby's West."
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
To Our Patrons
A Bald-Faced Preface
Life on the Middle Fork of the Hassayampa River
Astrology
An Arizona Zodiac
Fauna
Sea Gophers and Bashful Bass
The Gilagator is not a Croc
Look Out for Milo Longneck
Flora
When to Plant Tarnations
Folklore
What to do When You See a Mirage
Arizona's Worst-Kept Secrets
Urban Legends Thrive in Cowburg
The Long Arm of the Law
Maggie, the Desert Mermaid
Food
Food to Think About
Making Do
Big Macaroni
Chili and Beans
Menudo
The Nutritional Values of Fresh Milk
Beanee Weenee Pie
How Green Was My Chili
Geography
Arizona's Place in Space
A Lot of Latitude
Imports and Exports
Hard Times in Hardwater
Quicksand Miners Need Lots of Grits
History A Superficial History of Arizona
How the Banjo Won the West
Holiday Tales
A Sampler of New Year's Resolutions
The Hero of Goat Gap
Home Remedies
Help for What Ails You
Pitiful Dreamer
Household Hints
Hardware and Software
Discography
Breaking Out
Mining
Lost Mines Are Not in Vein
The Ghost of Gig O'Hertz
Timmy and the Devil
Mickey's Magic Rope
Modern Living:
How to talk to a Robot
Turn Your Trash into Cash
Time Warps and Middle Age
The Digital Stampede of 2004
The Horseless Carriage
How to See through Women
Nightmare in a Dream Home
Gossip in the High-Tech Age
Politics
Grave Political Issue
Yessir, Yessir, Three Brains Full
Weather
The Case of the Stolen Steeple
A Blizzard of Sunshine
The High Country
Ice Fishing
The Winds of Winslow